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Judging from the general lack of response in this forum, I'm not holding my breath. I'm thinking of purchasing an Electone, though, and I don't want to blindly order a model hoping for the best. So if anyone knows about Electone more than I do... feel free to reply.

The lack of response is indicative of the lack of interest in the organ business today. It peaked in the US in the mid 1980's. Electones were a line of quality home organs that were built and marketed by Yamaha. They were made for several years with several generations and evolutions of models. Electones are no longer imported by Yamaha Corporation of American into the US. They may still be sold in other parts of the world.

Their quality, performance, and durability were at the top of the catagory.

Co-Author of The Complete Idiot's Guide To Buying A Piano. A "must read" before you shop. Work for west coast dealer for Yamaha, Schimmel, Bosendorfer, Wm. Knabe.

Actually, I reread the website I was on and discovered (just like Marty Flinn said) that they weren't selling any electones anymore. So never mind. :P

Just for future reference, though, what model would you recommend for a beginning player who's on a budget? My family used to own an EL-90, but my understanding is that's for someone who's more or less "serious" about playing... which I'm not.

Electones are still sold in Japan. They're not as popular as pianos, but they sell enough to sustain monthly music magazines. You'll find them at large music dealers and Yamaha stores.

But, yeah, in the US, home organs were somewhat popular in the 70's with names like Lowery and Thomas and then the market just crashed for them. If you find one at all, it will be a dusty piece of junk. That market has mostly been absorbed by fancy digital piano instruments like the Yamaha CVP series. These have rhythms and accompaniment like the old home organs did (as well as various orchestral, synth, organ and other sounds besides piano).

The electone organ was a yamaha product, and I sold them! They were a good organ, and the sounds were good on them. The only problem was learning to set them up as they did not really utilize the stop tab system but a roller system. The organs were good products of Yamaha!

I played an Electone - well a number of electones for years. I had an HX 1 that I loved. I bought a second had FX 20 a few years ago for a good price and it's still going strong - and I still enjoy playing it.

After seeing this, I inquired at Yamaha Canada why they don't sell these in North America. They said there was no market for it (with over 300 million population?). I told them they're wrong, as I would buy one in a heartbeat.

Another issue is the (apparently) different voltage of these organs compared to the North American one. They told me that plugging a Stagea in the electrical system of my house can make it burn down. I'm not convinced this is true, as I've ordered several appliances made for Japan use and the voltage is the same as in Canada.

Some people have imported such organs in Europe/North America, but then it's extremely costly and good luck if you ever need service on it.

Certain models are HIGHLY collectable right now, especially the C600, if I'm remembering correctly. If you can find an old one in good working order, try it out, and if you like it, snag it.

Most modern guys into recording want the Electone mainly for the sequencer. Once you've heard an Electone sequencer, you'll notice right off that it's something you heard a million times before without knowing what it was.

The Electone "organ" is really not an organ: it's the "organ" version of a synthesiser that was especially popular (and expensive) in the late 70's. I have a few of them and use them as analogue synths, not organs.